


I Will Always Be With You

by Say_Anything



Series: The Failsafe [2]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Fluff, cuz they're avocado sized, fankid involved but they're not named, glimmer takes the failsafe au, i couldn't take glimmer being actually dead, reverse uno card on myself
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 20:16:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27711910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Say_Anything/pseuds/Say_Anything
Summary: Adora wakes up from a nightmare of Glimmer's death. She is shaken but grateful to realize her wife is still with her and their life together is just beginning.
Relationships: Adora/Glimmer (She-Ra)
Series: The Failsafe [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2026825
Comments: 12
Kudos: 27





	I Will Always Be With You

**Author's Note:**

> Heyoooo, this is a part 2 to my 'Glimmer dies from Failsafe complications' oneshot. You can read them as a series, or separately, whichever ending you prefer. I am too baby to have let that be a perma-death. So here's this short, soft, fluff to accompany it! :---)  
> Enjoy!

Adora woke with a start, shooting up in bed so fast she nearly toppled over the side. Her legs were twisted in the sheets, body covered in a cold sweat. Her stomach churned dangerously, throat tightening as her insides threatened to become her outsides.

Kicking off the covers, Adora swung her legs over the side of the mattress, leaning forward until her head hung between her knees and she could fend off the dizziness.

Glimmer was dead. 

Glimmer was dead.

Her wife was dead. 

She was alone.

She’d read Glimmer’s final words before collapsing in on herself like a dying star.

The last thing Adora remembered was giving into the mercy of sleep. It appeared she’d somehow slept through the night. A gentle morning glow was coming in through the windows. The light made everything look so clean and new, betraying the grief weighing heavy in Adora’s soul.

Letting her face fall into her hands, Adora welcomed her first day without Glimmer with quiet sobs. She wanted to break, to scream, to beat her fists against something until the pain  _ stopped _ . Instead, she sat hunched over, biting back the worst of her sobs. She had to be strong. She’d promised glimmer.

Suddenly, another noise drew her attention; louder than the tentative sobs. One she hadn’t expected. A soft rustling of sheets behind her followed by a sleepily mumbled, "'Dora…?"

Adora’s eyes flew open, and she twisted around so quickly she heard something in her back pop. Sure enough, Glimmer was there lying behind her. She was rubbing one eye tiredly, her mouth opening in a wide yawn. Her short hair was messy and ruffled from sleep, brilliant sparkles catching the morning light.

"What time izzit?" She mumbled, peering at Adora through a bleary squint. "Why are you crying..?"

Breathless, unsure whether this was reality, or another dream, Adora choked back another sob and dove towards her wife. If she was dreaming, she was determined to hold Glimmer one last time before never seeing her again.

Glimmer's grunt of surprise was muffled as the blonde wrapped herself around the Queen. She pressed herself against Glimmer’s chest, ear over her failsafe scars where she could hear the rapid beat of her heart. 

_ Her heart… _

She wasn’t dying.

Adora hadn’t watched her waste away for months. She hadn’t held her in her arms as her heart failed her and the light left her eyes. It had all seemed so real… an entire lifetime of consequences she hadn’t foreseen….Playing out day by day.

But it wasn’t. This was reality… Right?

The realization that she didn’t know made her panic. Adora began to shake, her breath coming in choppy pants as she sobbed.

_ Please let this be real, let this be real. _

Out loud she cried, “Don’t leave me, don’t leave me, don’t leave me. Please.”

One arm she slung tightly around Glimmer's waist, clutching her oversized sleep shirt. Her legs tangled with the Queen’s shorter ones, gripping as tightly as she could. It wasn't until she was completely tangled up in Glimmer that she broke down into hysterical sobs.

"Adora, hey….," Glimmer's soothing voice held a twinge of panic. "It's alright, sweetheart. I'm here…I’m not going anywhere. I promise."

They'd been through Adora’s panic attacks too many times now. Especially as she began to unravel the baggage and guilt she’d gained from carrying the weight of the universe on her shoulders.

Glimmer knew the drill. 

Asking her what was wrong, wouldn't get a response. Often Adora couldn’t even hear Glimmer’s attempts to calm her. The best strategy was to ground the blonde with touch. Firm strokes of her hands, play with her hair, use her nails to accentuate the feeling against Adora’s skin. 

And wait to verbally prompt her until the attack had mostly passed. Never push for an answer. Reassure Adora of her presence until she was ready to explain it herself.

Glimmer followed the steps without fail.

She hummed quietly, maintaining an air of calm although Adora could feel how fast her heart was slamming against her chest now. Carefully, she drew gentle hands up and down Adora’s back, rubbing more firmly than she usually would, digging her nails in every so often to ground her sobbing wife. She kissed the top of Adora’s head, nuzzling into her hair and murmuring, “I’m here. I’m here. I’m here, Adora. I’m here.”

Adora wasn’t sure how long it took, it felt like an eternity passed before her tears dried, her shivering stopped, and her body finally relaxed. She sagged against her wife, exhausted, staring blankly at the wall of their bedroom as she tried to regain an ounce of energy. 

To her credit, Glimmer still did not push. She waited until finally, Adora found the strength to say, “I had a dream I lost you.”

Glimmer paused for a moment, squeezing Adora’s shoulders before responding. “You lost me?”

Adora nodded once, clutching the fabric of Glimmer’s shirt so tightly her knuckles turned white. “The Failsafe. It killed you slowly… You died in my arms. I could feel… everything. See… Everything. Our whole life together...”

Adora held back a fresh round of sobs, inhaling deeply before letting out a shaky laugh. “It was so real…. I don’t even know if  _ this _ isn’t the dream…”

“This is  _ not _ a dream,” Glimmer reassured her, almost angrily. “You know I’m healthy, ‘Dora. Before the ceremony we checked with my dad, Casta… the best healers in Etheria… I’m not in any danger. The only thing the Failsafe left me with were some weird scars.”

Tenderly, Glimmer brought one of Adora’s hands up to her chest. On instinct, Adora traced the razor thin scars with the pads of her fingers. The familiar habit soothed her further.

She pondered Glimmer’s words, realizing this all sounded familiar. And in fact, her panicked dream had probably come from the irrational fear that they were all somehow simultaneously wrong. But Glimmer was right. Before the ceremony they’d wanted to ensure Glimmer’s body was strong enough to carry--

Suddenly Adora remembered.

Untangling herself from her wife, Adora slid down, gently pushing up the fabric of her Glimmer’s sleep shirt, revealing the slight swell of her belly. At four months, her baby bump was not noticeable outside their more intimate moments. Seeing it now sent a calm wave rolling through Adora. Closing her eyes, she leaned down and pressed her lips to the soft warm skin, her hands maintaining their firm grip on Glimmer's sides. 

The simple act of lavishing affection on her wife was enough to erase the trauma of her nightmare. She was breathing and healthy and carrying their tiny,  _ tiny _ baby, that Adora knew was barely larger than an avocado right now. A fact Adora remembered finding endlessly amusing when she’d learned. Nudging Glimmer and pointing every time they were served said item at dinner. It always earned an amused eye roll from Glimmer.

Smiling, Adora continued pressing gentle kisses over every inch of Glimmer's skin, focusing on the rise and fall of her stomach as she breathed. Glimmer slid a hand through her hair, blunt fingernails scraping gently over her scalp. The sensation was subtle enough for Adora to fully accept that  _ this _ was reality. She was no longer dreaming. 

Feeling grateful tears springing to her eyes, Adora pushed herself back up to Glimmer's level, meeting her in a gentle but passionate kiss. One of Glimmer's hands fell over Adora's, still resting on her stomach. She laced their fingers together, the other hand rising to cup Adora's cheek and stroke a thumb across her jaw. 

Reluctant, but breathless, Adora pulled away from the kiss and settled against Glimmer's side, burying her face in her neck and inhaling her warm scent.

"Go back to sleep, 'Dora," Glimmer hummed, stroking her hand through Adora’s loose hair. "I'll be here. I promise. Everything is alright, love. You're safe. I'm safe." Glimmer tapped the hand Adora still had against her belly. " _ She's  _ safe."

Nodding against her neck, exhausted, Adora simply wrapped herself around Glimmer, tangling their legs together. 

"I love you," she mumbled, kissing her neck gently, and savoring the softness. "I love you, Glim."

"I love you too, Adora," Glimmer's voice held the hint of an amused chuckle. She kissed Adora’s forehead and then repeated the vow she said so often that it had echoed in Adora’s dream: 

“Always and forever.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thought, comments, and/or critiques are welcomed and encouraged.
> 
> Thank you for reading!


End file.
